A recent oil spill, likely originating from Venezuela’s El Palito refinery, has polluted a bay along the country’s north-central coast in the Caribbean Sea, according to multiple sources speaking to Reuters on Saturday.
Biologist Eduardo Klein shared satellite images on the platform X, revealing an oil slick spanning approximately 225 square kilometers in the Golfo Triste. The images showed the slick completely covering Morrocoy National Park, a region famed for its palm-lined beaches and mangroves.
As of now, neither the state-owned oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) nor the country’s oil ministry has issued a statement regarding the spill.
The El Palito refinery, located in the Puerto Cabello municipality in the central state of Carabobo, is Venezuela’s smallest oil processing facility. It has a capacity of 146,000 barrels per day.
“The spill came from El Palito,” a source told Reuters. “This morning, beaches in Boca de Aroa were covered with hydrocarbons, and the spill also affected some boats, including artisanal fishing vessels.”
Another witness reported seeing three large oil slicks that had washed ashore.